Whatever action a person undertakes with body, speech or mind, whether right or wrong, these five are its causes.
Explanation
Krishna is continuing his explanation to Arjuna of how action comes about. Any action (karma), whether done through body, speech or thought and whether right or wrong, depends on the five factors listed in the previous verse: the seat or base, the doer, the instruments, the various efforts, and fate or the divine (daiva). The point leads into the next verse, which warns against seeing oneself alone as the doer.